Endgame
by RaisedOnRadio
Summary: The game is almost over. Will the king lose his queen to the knight? -/- Spoilers for chapter 87. One-shot, complete.


The floor was marble, alternating in squares of black and white. It reminded Yuki of a chessboard, but the pieces that moved across it do not pay attention to the rules, instead dancing fluidly across the spaces. They were mostly pawns, with a few better pieces thrown in, but the multiple hues of the clothing they wore did not hint at which side they were on.

When Yuki realized how she was thinking of these people, disgust at herself rose in her throat. They were vampires, her people. Flesh and blood, not stone or glass.

She had just given Isaya-sama a dance. Another partner had taken him from her, and she now felt exposed. The cloak she had hidden under earlier had concealed more than the flimsy piece of starched fabric now on her face.

There was tension in the air. Everyone was awaiting the arrival of the king. Instinctively, they knew the queen was already here, even though she was behind her mask like everyone else.

They were in the final stages of the game. The queen was a very important piece on the chessboard, but a game could still be won without her.

Yuki found herself standing squarely on a white section of the floor. If she closed her eyes, the soft rustle of silks, satins, and velvets combined with the low murmur of voices took her back to her first soiree as a vampire.

It had not been a masquerade like this one. She had been on display for everyone at the event to enjoy, like a piece of fine art at a gallery.

Look, but don't touch.

If a stranger had visited her during the year she had lived with Kaname and told her where she would be today, she would have scoffed and told Kaname when he had returned home.

It had seemed like he was never home.

If the stranger had gone one step further and told her when she was simply a student at Cross Academy where she would be today, she would have smiled politely and told Zero of the strange event later.

Zero had always been there, until her king had swept her away from everything she had always known.

In her mind, the stranger looked like an older version of herself. Maybe it was her mother.

Or maybe she was thinking too deeply and needed some air.

She stepped outside of the ballroom onto the balcony, pulling off the mask. It was irrational, but she felt like she could breathe better without it.

Wasn't there an ancient story, of a king losing his queen to one of his knights? The king had been good, so why had the queen strayed?

In chess it was easier, because the queen couldn't decide to change sides.

Was that what she had really done? She wasn't certain.

She heaved a sigh. _Would he come?_

She felt a familiar presence behind her, and whipped her head around before it registered to her senses that it was not Kaname.

It was Zero that stood behind her, wearing the mask and suit Isaya-sama had provided for him.

Was it relief or disappointment she felt?

"What is it," she said, "Ze–"

His fingers on her lips silenced her. "Isn't it the etiquette," he said, trailing his fingers to her chin, "To hide one's name when the mask is worn?"

She remembered the mask that she had clutched in her hand. As she lifted it, she saw it now contained wrinkles where she had been holding it tightly, lost in her thoughts. She turned away and tied it back into place.

"Good evening," she said, turning back to face him. She hoped the sudden jump in her heartbeat couldn't be heard in her voice. "It's our first time meeting, isn't it? Who might you be?"

Then she dropped her head, feeling childish. "Just kidding," she murmured, grateful that the mask could be useful for one thing – hiding the flush that had risen to her cheeks.

When she raised her eyes, she found he was offering his hand to her. Tentatively, she took it, and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor.

Their movements were in time with the music, in time with each other.

"So you can dance after all," Yuki said softly.

"You're very similar," he said, "To a precious girl who died a year ago…"

It had felt like she had died, she thought. She was so far from the girl she had been. Or was she just fooling herself? Maybe nothing had really changed at all. She was even back to the cropped hair she had favored.

"You too," she said. "You're similar to the guy whom I worried about and wanted to protect."

_I hurt him._ Her voice caught, she didn't know if she had spoken the words or not.

"But, you're a different person, right?" she continued. "He isn't someone who would dance with vampires, after all."

The flood of memories twirled and spun before her eyes. Of them growing up together, two orphans, the times she had never hesitated to touch him, or him place a hand on her. They had been side-by-side for so long.

Why had it turned out like this? She tried to focus on his hand holding hers.

If the king had not left her alone as a child, maybe it would have turned out differently. Maybe the knight would not have taken his place, even accidentally.

When their lips met, she didn't know who had initiated it. It had probably been her – she didn't know when her hand had moved to his neck, after all.

The feeling was real, something she had buried deep for a long time.

_But…she…_

She knew fond was not the right word, but she couldn't give it a more intense one. Not yet, because she was afraid she hadn't let go of the king yet.

When they pulled apart, she saw over Zero's shoulder a dark figure, one she also knew so very well.

Was that disappointment or relief she felt?

...

* * *

…

This was the first story where I had the summary before the story. I wish most of my one-shots were like that, ha!

The summary was a sentence I came up with for a colored manga picture I did on Deviantart, also by the title 'Endgame'. You can find it on my DA account, there is a link on my profile - my username is caressofsteel.

Thanks for reading!


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